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Overdue: Read Freely Fest Kickoff

Free | 18+ | ID required

Images of customers participating in Overdue events

Start your Read Freely Fest weekend at Overdue, Richland Library's after-hours celebration.

Live music, interactive art, hands-on workshops, games, food, and drinks take over the library after dark.

Live performances by:

Activities include:

  • Wire-wrapped flowers
  • Hidden message bookmarks
  • Open mic with Soda City Poetry
  • Synth Garden with Swamp Flux
  • Community zine making with Zita
  • Collage workshop with Elizabeth Houck-Zozaya
  • “Exquisite Corpse” collaborative drawing with Sarah Petrulis
  • Paint-by-numbers community mural by Cedric Umoja-Day
  • And more!

Food and drinks available from Curiosity Coffee Bar.

Filter by genre:
Click any genre below to see sessions that match your interests.

Author Schedule

10 – 11 AM

Outdoor Main Stage

Stories That Make Us Swoon

From sizzling and seductive to sweet and charming, these romantic reads keep readers coming back for more. Siera London, A Hard Habit to Break K.C. Mills, You Could Do Damage Too Ashley Poston, Seven Year Slip Kennedy Ryan, Can't Get Enough
Auditorium

All Aboard the Starship

At the edge of the galaxy, adventure and science collide in stories driven by big ideas and bold exploration.

R.T. Ester, The Ganymedan K.B. Wagers, And the Mighty Will Fall
Theater

The Art of the Twist

What's a thriller without a twist or two — page-turners that subvert expectations in the name of suspenseful drama.

Yasmin Angoe, Behind These Four Walls L. Divine, Lost in the Garden of Eve Jen Marie Wiggins, The Good Bride
Hampton Plaza Stage

Don't Trust the Garden

From mushroom magic to lush mysterious estates, garden-rooted stories become sites of fantasy and horror.

Tanya Pell, Her Wicked Roots Mia Tsai, The Memory Hunters Kirsten Miller, The Women of Wild Hill

11:30 AM – 12:30 PM

Outdoor Main Stage

Headliner:
Drew Lanham

In conversation with Glenis Redmond.

A native of Edgefield, South Carolina, J. Drew Lanham is a birder, naturalist, and educator whose works includes his memoir, The Home Place, and two collections of poetry.

Cover of Joy is the Justice We Give Ourselves
Auditorium

Bards, Mages & Sorcerers, Oh My

Trading looming apocalypses for cozy worlds, heartwarming fantasy stories embrace whimsical, character-driven tales with gentler stakes.

Maiga Doocy, Sorcery and Small Magics Courtney Floyd, Higher Magic Emily Krempholtz, Violet Thistlewaite Is Not a Villain Anymore
Theater

Publishing Pathways

A look at how books make their way to the shelf, examining the different publishing avenues available to today's authors.

Siera London, A Hard Habit to Break K.C. Mills, You Could Do Damage Too

1 – 2 PM

Outdoor Main Stage

When Mystery Gets Cozy

Punny titles, plucky amateur sleuths, and just a pinch of murder and mayhem define these cozy whodunits.

Laura Bradford, A Plus One for Murder V.M. Burns, Murder From A to Z Lynn Cahoon, An Amateur Sleuth's Guide to Murder
Auditorium

Where Magic Meets the Heart

Fantasy, romance or both?
Romantasy is a rapidly growing genre where worldbuilding and a little spice intertwine.

N.E. Davenport, Our Vicious Oaths Shanora Williams, Mayhem and the Mortal
Theater

Brave and Brainy Heroes

The creators behind the young superhero geniuses and robot adventurers shape comics and graphic novels for tweens and up.

Michael Rex, Your Pal Fred Jonathan Todd, Timid Stephanie Williams, Moon Girl & Devil Dinosaur

2:30 PM – 3:30 PM

Outdoor Main Stage

Headliner:
Kennedy Ryan

In conversation with Synithia Williams.

A New York Times bestselling author, Kennedy Ryan has written more than 20 novels and has solidified herself as one of the most influential voices in contemporary romance fiction.

Cover of Can't Get Enough
Auditorium

Mirror, Mirror, On the Wall

Lived experiences come into focus through memoir, revealing personal stories shaped by memory and truth.

Cinelle Barnes, Malaya: Essays on Freedom Jennifer Hope Choi, The Wanderer's Curse Drew Lanham, Joy is the Justice We Give Ourselves Keith Rushing, Descended: Searching for My Gullah-Geechee Roots
Theater

Listening to the Land & People

South Carolina poets engage with ecopoetics, using poetry to examine the relationship between humans and the natural world.

Jennifer Bartell, Only Believe Marlanda Dekine, Thresh & Hold Jo Angela Edwins, A Dangerous Heaven Glenis Redmond, The Song of Everything: A Poet's Exploration of South Carolina's State Cassie Premo Steele, Beaver Girl

4 – 5 PM

Outdoor Main Stage

Headliner:
Tiffany D. Jackson

In conversation with Ashley Silvera.

A highly acclaimed, New York Times bestselling author, Tiffany D. Jackson writes YA novels that blend psychological thrills and horror with intense social commentary.

Cover of The Scammer
Auditorium

Dig Me a Grave

A definitive Southern Gothic true-crime account of the life, crimes, conviction, and execution of Donald “Pee Wee” Gaskins—written by the prosecutor who brought him to justice.

Richard Harpootlian, Dig Me A Grave; The Inside Story of the Serial Killer Who Seduced the South Chris Trainor, Moderator
Theater

South Carolina at America's Beginning

South Carolina patriots shaped the Southern Campaign of the Revolutionary War, bringing local voices and history into focus.

Carl Borick, Backcountry Resistance: South Carolina's Militia and the Fight for American Independence Steven Smith, The Battles of Fort Watson and Fort Motte

Entertainment Schedule

10:00 AM

10 – 11 AM Children's Room

Plink, Rattle, Toot

Family storytime paired with live jazz music.

10:15 AM – 3:30 PM Local History

Meet Your Next Favorite Author

Speed-dating with indie writers. Find your new favorite read across rotating genre-based sessions.

10:30 AM

11:00 AM

11 AM – 4 PM Second Level

Zine Fair + Making

Zine Makers from South Carolina will be selling their locally made zines featuring art, poetry, fiction, and comics.

11 AM – 3 PM Second Level

Bad Art Making

Create weird, unhinged art and see it displayed for public contemplation.

11:30 AM

11:30 AM – 12:30 PM Hampton Plaza Stage

Cycles and Ritual

Richland Library's Artist-in-Residence Angela Gallo performs a movement piece exploring cycles and ritual.

Noon

12:30 PM

1:00 PM

1:00 – 2:00 PM Hampton Plaza Stage

The Morel Support Group

Folkgrass Americana band with a jammy edge and groovy roots.

1:30 PM

2:00 PM

2:30 PM

2:30 – 3:30 PM Hampton Plaza Stage

Angela Easterling

Americana singer-songwriter crafting story-driven songs grounded in history and home.

2:30 – 3:30 PM Children's Room

Puppetpalooza

Your favorite shows performed by puppets.

3:00 PM

3:30 PM

4:00 PM

4 – 5 PM Hampton Plaza Stage

Brittany Turnipseed

Known as the Southern Songbird, soulful vocals meet warmth and charm.

4:30 PM

5:00 PM

Filter by genre:
Click any genre below to see sessions that match your interests.

Author Schedule

12:30 – 1:30 PM

Outdoor Main Stage

Headliner:
Sadeqa Johnson

In conversation with Jemia Williams.

The author of six novels, Sadeqa Johnson is a New York Times bestseller known for historical fiction that shines a light on the dark spaces of American history.

 

Cover of Keeper of Lost Children
Auditorium

Flavors of Georgia

From Brunswick stew to Savannah Red Rice, Georgia's signature dishes are steeped in history and the stories that have shaped its rich food culture.

David S. Shields, Kevin Mitchell, Taste the State Georgia: Distinctive Foods and Stories from Where Eating Local Began
Theater

Crafting the Comic

An award-wining cartoonist known for the Eisner-nominated Blammo offers a live drawing demonstration, sharing insight into his creative process.

Noah Van Sciver, Maple Terrace

2 – 3 PM

Outdoor Main Stage

Headliner:
Kirsten Miller

In conversation with Yasmin Angoe.

Writing for children, teens, and adults, Kirsten Miller is a bestselling novelist whose adult fiction tackles social issues and centers on strong female characters.

The Women of Wild Hill Cover
Auditorium

The Path to Public Service

A blend of history and memoir, The First Eight examines the lives of eight Black South Carolinians who served during and after Reconstruction, whose leadership paved the way for Clyburn's own public service.

Congressman Clyburn, The First Eight: A Personal History of the Pioneering Black Congressmen who Shaped a Nation Jaime Harrison, Moderator
Theater

Storytellers with a Drawl

Set in the sandy soil of South Carolina or the red clay of Alabama, stories capture the texture and voices of the South.

Lis Anna-Langston, Wild Asses of the Mojave Desert Angela Jackson-Brown, Untethered Dan Leach, Junah at the End of the World Susan Zurenda, The Girl From the Red Rose Motel

3:30 – 4:30 PM

Outdoor Main Stage

EveryBODY Needs Love

Love stories that center and affirm diverse bodies highlight the importance of representation in romance.

Aries Skye, Love on Board Jahquel J., Rich and Rotten Denise Williams, The Re-Do List
Auditorium

Living the Past Through Story

The past comes vividly to life through Southern histories, explorations of Black faith and family, and portrayals of Appalachian communities.

Donna Everhart, Women of a Promiscuous Nature Angela Jackson-Brown, Untethered Cathy Rigg, That Which Binds Us
Theater

After the Lights Go Out

What lurks in the darkness? Stories that tap into fear, suspense, and the unsettling truths hiding just beneath the surface.

Elizabeth Broadbent, Blood Cypress Tiffany D. Jackson, White Smoke Hien Nguyen, Twin Tides

Entertainment Schedule

11:00 AM

11 AM – 12 PM Children's Room

Sensory Hour

Lower lights, softer sounds, calmer space. Plus gentle yoga for everyone and time to destress with a therapy pet.

11:30 AM

12:00 PM

12:00 – 2:30 PM Local History

Meet Your Next Favorite Author

Speed-dating with indie writers. Find your new favorite read across rotating genre-based sessions.

12:30 PM

12:30 – 1:30 PM Hampton Plaza Stage

Banned Book Reading

Students from across SC read excerpts from books that have been banned in our state to celebrate our right to read.

1:00 PM

1 – 3 PM Second Level

Character Creation

Start making a character for your next writing project.

1 – 3 PM Second Level

Poetic Silence

Relax with a set of headphones and your own private poetry playlist.

1:30 PM

2:00 PM

2 – 3 PM Hampton Plaza Stage

John Fowler

Traditional Appalachian storytelling and music rooted in history and lived culture.

2 – 3 PM Children's Room

Plink, Rattle, Toot

Family storytime paired with live classical music.

2:30 PM

3:00 PM

Friday March 27, 7-11 PM Overdue: Kickoff Party, Live Music, Crafts - Saturday, March 28, 9 AM - 6 PM Indie Author Alley, Exhibitor Hall, Author Talks & Panels, Book Sale - Sunday March 29, 10 AM - 4 PM Indie Author Alley, Exhibitor Hall, Author Talk